Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

Q: I recently attended one of your golf clinics, where we had a discussion and you pointed out that when you hit a second shot, especially after the first one goes bad, the tension is off so you hit a better shot many times because you are relaxed. This is a follow-up question that focuses on pre-shot jitters and your suggestions of what to do to calm the fear that “I am going to miss this.”

Specifically, you take one or more practice swings and really chunk it (or whiff!!), or the ball doesn’t lie cleanly in the fairway but is not sitting in an obvious divot; or related to that situation, the ball lies on a wet and soft tight fairway and you are far enough out that you want to use a fairway wood or lower loft hybrid.

After the fact I have said to myself, “I should have used an 8-iron and hit it short of the green because I knew I was going to hit a big clump of mud/ground and the ball was not going very far.” I.e., better to hit it 8-iron distance than about 10-15 yards. Harry M.

Daril Pacinella(Photo: PROVIDED PHOTO)

A: This is something that all golfers have done and continue to do. This applies moreso with amateurs than pros.

We all have had indecision on what club to hit. We may select one club and then possibly change to another club thinking that this is the "correct club," only to realize it was the wrong club after we hit the shot.

Then we start to hear our inner voice saying, "I should have stuck with my first choice," or "I knew I should have hit the other club."

I like to teach my students to think and visualize all the possibilities, which include where to hit the ball and where not to hit it, be long or short, left or right.

Once you have decided on the shot you want to hit based on the information you have taken in, select the club that will produce the shot. Now you must commit to that shot 100 percent. Never get over the ball and second guess your decision. This is what causes bad shots. See it, commit to it, hit it. Have fun and enjoy the game.

Daril’s credentials

Daril Pacinella is the Director of Instruction at Turtle Creek Country Club in Rockledge. He is a teaching professional with more than 40 years of experience. He was nominated as one of the “top 100 instructors in America,” by Golf magazine; “Best Golf Teacher” in Massachusetts by Golf Digest and Connecticut PGA Teacher of the Year. He is a certiﬁed TPI golf ﬁtness instructor and has developed strength and ﬂexibility programs for golfers of all ages.

Readers may submit questions on anything related to golf. Send your question to pgabear@aol.com. If your question is selected, it will be published in the sports section in FLORIDA TODAY on Tuesday. You also will receive a free round of golf provided at one of the golf courses listed: Turtle Creek Golf Course in Rockledge, Duran Golf Course in Viera, Baytree National Golf Links in Suntree, or Viera East Golf Club.